Florida law enforcement officials received hands-on training from Harris Corporation’s cyber security experts during a free workshop held in south Florida.
The Melbourne-based aerospace and defense contractor hosted more than 50 people at a workshop that took a look at some of the tools cyber criminals have at their disposal.
They also learned how to protect their networks.
“Cybersecurity is a complex industry,” said Greg Coleman, marketing intelligence manager for Harris Communications Systems, in a release. “Harris is pleased to offer the best of the best experts in the industry to help our law enforcement partners take action against this everyday threat.”
Harris, which employs 6,000 in Central Florida, has a sprawling campus in Melbourne.
The company specializes in communications technology, as well as technology embedded in satellites.
Siemens beefs up cyber defense program
The energy giant Siemens says a partnership it announced Tuesday positions the company to help other businesses stave off cyber attacks.
The company has partnered with the small Maryland-based security company Tenable Inc. to help utilities, oil and gas companies to prepare their critical infrastructure for cyberattacks.
“Cyberattacks against the … utilities sector are on the rise and growing more sophisticated and aggressive by the day,” said Leo Simonovich, vice president and global head of Siemens’ Industrial Cyber and Digital Security division.“Passive monitoring of all assets in these systems is critical to detecting and addressing vulnerabilities before they can be exploited and lead to disruption of essential public services like electricity, gas and water.”
The two firms will combine services to help companies assess their resources to determine where they might be vulnerable.
An October survey found that cyber attacks on utility infrastructure is one of the biggest threats facing the energy industry.
The cybersecurity group for Siemens, which employs more than 5,000 in Central Florida, falls under its Power Generation Services Division, which has its hub in Orlando.
Tenable CEO Amit Yoran said the need to understand how exposed a company is to cyberattacks has become increasingly important to critical infrastructure companies.
“We have seen the rise of cloud, mobile and ‘Internet of Things’ … which have made the critical systems vulnerable to increasingly aggressive adversaries and attacks,” he said.
Simulation firm lands work
An Orlando simulation firm is jumping into augmented reality after landing a research and development contract with a Melbourne-based company.
Serious Simulations, which until now had focused on immersive military training systems, will produce a series of prototypes for wireless augmented reality headsets for Aeronyde Corporation.
Aeronyde specializes in fixed-wing drones that can carry tools that help in thermal imaging and mapping.
“This will be a terrific leap forward in visualization of a variety of data,” said Christopher Chambers, CEO and founder of Serious Simulations.
In a release, Serious Simulations’ officials say the first prototype will be ready by the end of the year. The value of the contract was not disclosed.
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